2026 Festival Song semi-finals bring 33 acts to Ranny Williams Saturday evening

The 2026 Jamaica Festival Song Competition moves toward its grand-final line-up this Saturday, 16 May, when semi-finalists perform from six o’clock in the evening at the Ranny Williams Entertainment Centre.

The Jamaica Cultural Development Commission (JCDC) has assembled thirty-three island-wide acts who made the cut from one hundred and eighty songs received. Each will seek one of ten places still open in a contest that has run for decades.

Those on the bill are expected to deliver self-penned Festival Song material that reflects national pride.

Minister of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport Olivia Grange said this season matters more than usual because the competition is observing its sixtieth birthday in 2026, cementing its place among the island’s enduring cultural fixtures.

“I am so proud of this competition. Envisioned by the founding fathers of the festival movement to promote the local music industry, the festival has grown from strength to strength, with a vast and enviable catalogue of entries and winners. This year, the competition celebrates its diamond anniversary, which is a testament to its potency. Like in previous years, we are looking forward to a great batch of songs this year, which we can submit for consideration for the Grammy Award,” Grange said.

The Festival Song contest still anchors the annual Emancipation and Independence period and gives both new voices and seasoned names a national spotlight. No other domestic tournament of this type has lasted as long, and its victors have often risen to wide renown.

Past champions named in connection with the series include Toots Hibbert, Eric Donaldson, Roy Rayon, The Astronauts, Stanley and the Turbines, Tinga Stewart, Stacious, and Buju Banton. In 2025, Abigail ‘Abi-D’ Dunstan took the title with Sweet JA.

There is no charge to attend Saturday night’s session.